


The Taken Heart

by arrowsshootyouforwards



Category: The Old Guard (Movie 2020)
Genre: Immortal Husbands Joe | Yusuf Al-Kaysani/Nicky | Nicolò di Genova, Kidnapping, M/M, Smut in chapter 3 only
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-09-30
Updated: 2020-10-02
Packaged: 2021-03-07 16:27:30
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 9,149
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26730625
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/arrowsshootyouforwards/pseuds/arrowsshootyouforwards
Summary: When Joe never arrives at a rendezvous point the team start to worry. Through investigation they realise he's been kidnapped by someone from their recent past. Just when they're onto finding him, Nile's dreams change, bringing a second hunt for their long lost teammate into the equation also.
Relationships: Joe | Yusuf Al-Kaysani/Nicky | Nicolò di Genova
Comments: 10
Kudos: 81





	1. The Missed Rendezvous

Only the moon illuminated the part of Nicky’s face that remained visible. The chill was starting to set in, seeping through the comfortable, oversized hoodie he was wearing, and so he pulled it tighter around him, but not enough to obscure his vision. After their last mission, which had thankfully gone off without a hitch, the team had made their individual ways to the rendezvous point. Well, that was, three of them had made it so far. Nicky was keeping watch for their fourth member. He was late. He was never _this_ late. This was what made Nicky so concerned.

There had been times where each of their number had been late to a rendezvous after having to lose someone they were being tailed by. But four hours late… It didn’t happen. When it got to three hours Andy had insisted, they move, but Nicky wasn’t so sure. He’d asked her to give him more time. Just a little. But this was too long. Nicky’s jaw ached from how long he’d had it clenched in concern. He heard the approach of someone else, but he knew it wasn’t Joe, so he kept his watch as Andy crouched by him.

“We need to move Nicky,” she urged.

“Something is wrong, he’s never this late, or late at all.”

“He’s a good warrior, he’ll meet us at the next place. He may already be on his way there,” she reasoned.

Nicky sighed; it was a possibility. “Something just doesn’t feel right,” he told her. Andy squeezed his shoulder. She went to stand, but his fingers closed around her wrist. “Wait,” they listened. Multiple vehicles could be heard approaching. It was late, much later than a reasonable time you would expect to hear multiple, heavily armoured, expensive vehicles drive through a poor neighbourhood. “We’ve been compromised, go, I’ll get Nile.” Andy told him where she had last been and Nicky dropped down, into the window he had made his way out of earlier, heading to where Andy had last known Nile to be. She was close to him. She ripped her headphones out of her ears when she saw him. “Someone’s coming, we have to go.”

Nimbly, they made their way over roofs, away from the oncoming vans. A bullet flew past Nicky’s ear, “Move!” He called to the others, looking back to see how many were pursuing them. He saw two on the roof, with another at least one more climbing up. Working together, Nile, Nicky and Andy made their way to their meeting point with Copley, where they would be extracted from the area. They were very late at this point and Copley was gonna be pissed.

“Where the hell have you guys been?” Copley demanded as they slammed the van door shut. “Where’s Joe?”

“He’s not here, just drive,” Andy told him in a tone that left little room for argument.

Joe groaned, rolling his neck to work out the kinks. He could feel the tight metal handcuffs biting at his skin where his arms were restrained behind him. Opening one eye to squint, he deduced the room was dimly lit enough for him to open his eyes and check his surroundings. He was on the floor, having been unceremoniously dropped int the middle of the small room. There wasn’t any furniture in the room, but he did note the blinking red light of a security camera coming from the corner over the door. Whoever had taken him must’ve known about his abilities, because he was fairly certain he had been shot in the head earlier. The way his hair felt matted to the back of his head confirmed his theory as he inched himself over to push up to sit. He fiddled with the handcuffs before taking a few deep, steadying breaths. He hated having to get out of handcuffs, but he was forever grateful that Booker had taught him the skill. Once his thumbs healed themselves he flexed them and stretched his shoulders and back out.

Joe stood, loosening his body back up before pacing the room, mentally taking its measurements. He settled in the corner opposite the camera, leaning back against the wall in a way that wasn’t comfortable, but passable and let his eyes close to get some rest. He had no idea what was in store for him and knew rest was an unlikely luxury.

_A safe location outside of S_ _ão Paulo_

After a tense, almost 6-hour drive, Copley pulled up to a safehouse outside of São Paulo that Andy had directed him to. Nicky had resigned himself to hoping Joe would turn up at some point after feeling disheartened when he was not already there. He took a shower and started making food for everyone with the limited provisions they had, keeping busy and doing anything to keep his mind from worrying about Joe. He knew, of course, that Andy was right, and Joe was a very capable man, but he was also the love of Nicky’s life, his everything and he couldn’t help but feel some worry.

Copley’s contacts were debriefing him on what had happened and how they had been found. They all hoped someone had eyes on Joe and knew where he was, but as Copley’s face turned grave, Nicky had to stop himself from fleeing the room. Not knowing was torture. Had he fallen to the same fate as Andy, but had not been so lucky to survive? Nicky was growing anxious which showed as he carelessly took a slice of his thumb with the knife he was using. Cursing he held the wound, watching the skin knit back together before his eyes, not meeting Andy’s eye as she raised an eyebrow where she sat between Nile and Copley. He muttered profanities in his various languages as he scrapped the blood-covered food and opted to make something new, something simpler.

Copley hung up his phone and set it solemnly on the table beside the laptop. “Well?” Nicky prompted.

Copley let out a breath. “It isn’t the best of news,” he admitted. He typed on the laptop and turned the screen. He talked them through the route the vans had taken, all coming from various rental dealers and rented from the same account. He tapped another key, an image of Joe weaving through civilians was on screen, “I’m sorry, but he was captured by one of the vans,” the next image showed him laying on the ground, another a truck pulling up and in the next both he and the truck were gone. Nobody on the street seemed to bat an eyelid. Nicky supposed that in poorer areas, run by the gangs, people were raised not to get involved for their own safety. He couldn’t blame them for not doing anything. A realisation dawned on Nicky.

“If they killed him, then why take him away? The people who took him must know about him. About all of us,” he said, the words leaving a foul taste in his mouth.

“You don’t think Booker-?” Nile began but Copley cut her off.

“I’ve been keeping tabs on him, the only thing he uses his phone for is take out and a hook-up app. He hasn’t had any communication with anything he doesn’t have to.”

“So if not him, then who?” Andy asked.

“What about from Merrick Industries? Could there have been a survivor?” Nicky asked.

“Oh shit,” Nile muttered. All eyes shot to her. “The woman who was running the tests on you guys, I don’t remember shooting her, just punching her. Getting you guys unstrapped seemed more important, fuck,” she groaned.

“It’s OK Nile, mistakes happen,” Nicky said.

“It’s clearly not OK, look what happened,” she argued.

“It’s happened and we’re going to fix it,” Andy cut in. “We learn as we go and we move on. Copley, can you track them to where they’ve taken him?”

“We’re working on it, but it may take some time to nail down a definite location.” Copley told them.

He worked late into the night, with little success. Andy and Nile went into the single bedroom to get some rest while Nicky volunteered to take the first watch. The apartment they were in was small, not really equipped to house four adults, but it would do as a temporary base of operations while they figured out where Joe was. Nicky was sat on the small couch, his sniper in pieces in front of him on the coffee table as he took it apart for cleaning and maintenance, a handgun within easy reach should trouble come knocking.

The night passed slowly once he had completed his task, the only sound was coming from the frenzied typing Copley was doing at his laptop. The quiet was interrupted by Nile’s disturbed sleep as she woke from another dream where she was likely subjected to Quynh drowning over and over again. Normally, after these dreams, she would bring herself out to get a drink of water, but tonight she woke Andy, a risky thing to do. “Andy, Andy wake up, Nicky!” She called him into the room.

“This had better be good,” Andy muttered, rubbing her eyes as Nicky turned on the light. Nile was crouched by Andy’s bunk, she looked between the other immortals.

“It’s Quynh, she’s out of the water, I saw the coffin being pulled out of the water, she could breath again, I felt it and I saw it. The light blinded me when they opened the coffin, so I didn’t see any faces or anything about the ship, but she’s out,” she explained in a single breath. Andy locked eyes with Nicky, on any other day, this would’ve been amazing news, but right now one of their number had been captured.

“You think it could be connected?” Nicky asked quietly.

“At this point, it wouldn’t surprise me,” Andy admitted. Pushing herself out of the bunk she passed them and went straight out to Copley. “When Booker came to you, did he ever mention another woman we lost before we met him?” She asked, direct and to the point.

Copley nodded, “He told me about Quynh yes.” Andy gave him a look, imploring him to continue. “And Merrick Industries was interested in finding her, to see if she was still alive. He outsourced to another company, told them to look for sites where witches were thrown at sea. That was the last I heard of the matter; they didn’t involve me.”

“If Dr Kozak knew, and she is the one who has had Joe captured, she could’ve passed on the search,” Nicky deduced.

“If it was happening in Nile’s dreams it’s recent, Copley, get your people searching, satellite imagery, anything that could help us find them both.” Andy’s tone left no room for discussion and Copley nodded, getting back to work. Andy turned to Nicky, “get some rest, I’ll keep watch,” she told and he returned to the bedroom alone, taking one of the vacant bunks.

Joe opened his eyes as the door lock of his cell released. Armed guards entered the cell, Joe looked up at them from his position on the floor. They were holding large guns, with smaller handguns holstered at their hips, Joe also saw the tip of blade handles poking out of a pocket on the opposite leg. They stood, not at ease, but not pointing their weapons either, he heard heels against the concrete as they were joined by an unfortunately familiar woman. “Didn’t realise I was due a check-up with you Dr Kozak,” Joe said, hiding his unease.

The Dr looked unimpressed and turned to leave the cell, ordering the two guards to “bring him” and reminding them they didn’t need to worry about whether or not he was alive, with a warning that the previous guards who had handled him didn’t fare too well. With a shared look between them, the guard furthest into the room raised his weapon and shot Joe through the head.

Joe was beginning to wake up when he felt his body slam against the ground again. The door lock engaged behind him and he groaned, pushing himself up to his knees to investigate his new surroundings. He was in a larger cell, there was an archway leading to a basic looking bathroom across the room, two bunks, cameras pointed to make sure every inch of the cell was visible. The room was lit by dim bulbs on the walls and an illuminated strip around a mirror that took up most of one wall. He investigated that first, reaching out to touch the glass, noting it was likely a two-way mirror and he was probably being watched. On one of the bunks there was a towel and some clean clothes. Joe didn’t feel particularly like letting his guard down, but he also didn’t know how long he was about to be in here and his bloody clothes were starting to get uncomfortable.

He showered as quickly as he could, cleaning the blood from his hair first before even changing out of his blood-soaked and bullet-ridden clothes. The clothes were reminiscent of prison scrubs, but they were clean and dry, so they would do. Both bunks were made up, the cell was clearly intended for two. He wondered where his cellmate was. When would they be joining him? He silently prayed it wouldn’t be soon, nor would it be his beloved. He took a seat on the bed the clothes had been on, leaning against the wall, facing the mirror and just waited.

In São Paulo, Nicky woke after an uneasy sleep. He could hear Copley talking in the other room and he could smell coffee. Following his nose, he went to get a cup, noting the absence of Nile and Andy. Holding the coffee pot up he silently asked if Copley wanted a top-up. The man shook his head, continuing to argue with his colleague on the phone. Copley hung up, pinching the bridge of his nose in frustration. “Anything while I was sleeping?”

“We’re narrowing down possible locations, but it’s taking time, more time than is ideal.” Copley’s admission made Nicky sigh; he had expected as much.

“Where are the others?”

“Nile went to pick up more provisions and Andy is guarding from outside. She said the typing was getting to her.” Nicky nodded, that checked out about Andy and he was glad Nile was picking up some more provisions for them. Safehouses were rarely stocked with anything of much use.

“You should rest too,” he told Copley, “you’re no use to us if you can’t see or think clearly.” Nicky sat at the table and began pulling the laptop towards him, he wasn’t as proficient as Booker with computers, but he was decent with them and had experience with the software Copley was running. Copley took the hint and passed over his notepad where Nicky could see the deterioration of his handwriting over the past few hours.

Nile returned a short while later while Nicky was monitoring the comms between Copley’s team, unpacking into the small kitchen space. “Anything?” She asked, her voice hopeful. He shook his head and she sighed. “We’ll find them,” she said, sounding sure. He wished he could share her optimism on the subject. She filled a mug with coffee and joined him at the table, “I had a thought, but I wanted to run it by you first,” she began and he removed the headphones, enabling captions on the screen to keep an eye on what was happening. “If my dreams have changed, odds are so have his,” she paused, and Nicky knew exactly who she meant. “Maybe it would be worth just reaching out,” she told him.

“Nile… I- I don’t know if that’s a good idea.” He admitted. “You heard Copley; he’s been living on alcohol since he moved to Paris. He- It wouldn’t work.” He said, trying to sound firm. He was still pissed at Booker after what he had done to them and now Joe had been captured again, likely for the same purpose. Nicky didn’t even want to think about the Frenchman, now or any time soon. “He would be a hinderance,” he added, not meeting her eye.

Thankfully, Nile dropped the topic, but he sensed the debate was not going to be over that easily. She pulled her chair over and started helping him make notes on the comms they were receiving, squeezing his arm reassuringly, “we’ll find them.”

Joe heard gunshots from outside the room. He was momentarily convinced the gang had found him and were breaking him out. He wasn’t sure how long he’d been missing now, but if he guessed, he would estimate it was coming up on 36 hours around now. The lock released on Joe’s cell door. To his dismay he was not met with the sight of his friends, but two armed guards who dropped another body to the ground in between the two bunks. A third tossed a bundle of a towel and some more scrubs next to the body whose clothes were dripping wet, the back of their head was covered in blood and matted hair, they had clearly put up a fight to the guards. Momentarily, Joe worried there was another new immortal, his theory grew more apparent as he watched the back of their head heal.

Joe kneeled nearby, not close enough for the person to lash out at him, but close enough to hear them take a breath. The body groaned, the voice sounded feminine, as it pushed itself over onto their back. Joe was met with a face he never expected to see again. “Quynh!” Joe moved closer to her, she pushed herself up, recognition crossing her face.

“Yusef,” she cried, relieved to finally see a familiar face. She held onto him tightly, her cold, wet dress dampening his scrubs. “Yusef, where are Andromache and Nicoló?” She asked in broken and unpractised Arabic, the language they had last conversed in centuries before. “And the dreams,” she continued, “there is a man and a woman-”

“I’ll explain everything,” he responded in the same language, knowing it was an older version of the language and any translation software would have a difficult time working it out. For a while at least. “But first, let’s get you clean and dried,” he insisted. Helping her to her feet, Joe took her into the bathroom, gathering the towel and the scrubs for her to wear. He started the shower with a pitiful water pressure and helped clean the back of her head. Once all of the blood was cleaned away, he turned away, standing in the door to block the camera and give her some privacy to clean herself properly. Once she was dressed, he watched as she wrapped her hair and smiled at him. It had been so long since he had laid eyes on this woman, he could barely believe she was real and standing before him now. “I can’t believe you’re really here,” he told her.

“Neither can I. But you promised me an explanation,” she reminded him.

“I did,” they sat closely on one of the bunks and he began explaining everything he could think of. He told her how when he and Nicky had found Andromache and rescued her from being burned at the stake a second time. How they had searched for decades until there were no remaining survivors of the ship that took her away and they had no way of knowing where she was. He told her of when they met Booker, and then Nile, he told her of the changes to the world she once knew and travelled. Then he explained why her dreams had changed and Booker was no longer with them. He began to feel her grow heavier against his shoulder and laid her on her side, covering her with the thin blanket. That night, he stayed awake, keeping watch of the first restful sleep Quynh had gotten in centuries.


	2. The Rescue

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Joe and Quynh at at Kozak's mercy and it's up to the team to rescue them

Another day had passed since Nile had suggested they reach out to Booker and Nicky was thankful Andy and Copley had backed him up that it was a bad idea when Nile brought it up with them. Nile and Nicky had been given their marching orders by Andy and sent to get some rest six hours ago. It took Nicky a couple of hours to settle. The longer he was away from Joe the worse he felt.

They had been separated before for missions, but this wasn’t for a mission. This time Joe had been taken and was going through God only knew what. Resigned to his worry, Nicky rolled off of his bunk and knelt by it, making the sign of the cross and whispering in Latin. He prayed every standard prayer he could remember in between begging the Lord to let him and Joe be reunited once again. He prayed for over an hour until his knees began to ache, he was out of practise from his days as a young priest, he knew that, but he didn’t care, he would do anything to find both Joe and Quynh and have them back safely.

Nicky managed a meagre 2 hours of poor sleep before the door was thrown open and the light turned on. “Get up, Copley has something on Quynh’s coffin, same payment details on the ship and vans used and the crew were all found dead with the ship adrift at sea. They killed any witnesses to them finding an immortal woman at the bottom of the ocean,” Andy filled them in as they followed her out to Copley.

“Did you manage to get a track on the money?”

“I did, it’s a rival company of Merrick Industries. I’ve cross reference their employee records and the only match is Dr Kozak, who had you at Merrick. Looks like she took her research and convinced them to fund her research,” he told them.

“OK, but where are they keeping Joe and Quynh?”

“I tracked them, but the vans split up, I have teams doing recon on the individual locations, I suggest you get some more rest until we find the exact one. But we’re close, I promise.”

Andy straightened up and pulled on a jacket that was over the back of a chair, “you guys rest up, train a little if you can, if Quynh’s back I need to pick something up.” She pushed a comm into her ear, “keep me updated,” she told Copley before walking out of the apartment in the dead of night.

Joe watched over Quynh while she slept on the other bunk, staying in a position he could easily put himself between her and the guards if he needed to. She woke a many hours later from a dream, groaning and pinching the bridge of her nose. “What is it?” He asked, keeping to the ancient Arabic.

“Booker; he took a punch in a bar fight,” she told him, scrunching up her nose and relaxing it again. “Would you like me to keep watch so you can sleep?” She asked him.

“No, I was sleeping before they brought you in, you can get more rest if you need it,” he offered.

“I think I’m OK,” she said. As she spoke Joe wrinkled his nose, sensing something new.

“Gas,” he told her, groaning. “They’re knocking us out. Or killing us.” Joe fell back onto his bunk, resigned to his own fate, knowing from experience there was no fighting it.

When he came to, Joe groaned internally, instantly detecting the tight straps over his arms and chest. They were tighter than the last time Dr Kozak had them in her lab. Joe opened his eyes, remembering he wasn’t her only test subject. Quynh was beside him, also strapped down and still unconscious. Instinctively he reached out to her, only to be stopped by the restraints.

“I wouldn’t bother trying to get out,” Dr Kozak’s voice interrupted him. “After the carnage that ended my work at Merrick Industries, I insisted we ensure you were secure.” Joe turned to look at the woman, she signed something on a clipboard and handed it to a younger colleague, likely an intern or lab tech, who looked afraid of her. She crossed in front of him and went over to Quynh who still had not stirred. She ran a few basic medical evaluations on Quynh before turning to the intern who had followed her, “prepare this one for the tests, I want to see if she reacts the same way his samples did before and have him prepared too, I want to see if his results are the same or different, now that some time has passed” she instructed. She turned back to Joe as three other interns or lab techs began prepping Quynh. “Since your friend lost her immortality, I never got to test female samples, looks like your friend’s tips were right on the money finding another one of you in the middle of the ocean. The things she must’ve experienced, drowning again and again, no friends, no one to save her. I can’t wait to cut into her and see what we can find.” She began walking away, “just think Joe,” she addressed him directly, “I could finally unlock the secret of your immortality,” she looked between he two immortals, “I could even find a way of reproducing it.”

Her last statement did not sit well with Joe as he panicked what other horrors he and Quynh could be subjected to. The last set of tests she did on him and Nicky had not been the least bit pleasant and a lack of consent had never seemed to bother the Dr at all.

It had been 2 more days since Copley had told them they were narrowing down the location possibilities. They had heard little from Andy since she had walked out and the three of them were getting restless. Nicky had been training Nile as often as her body could take it which as a former Marine, was a lot. In the evenings they had been pouring over the plans of the possible buildings and bunkers, planning entry and exit strategies for each one. When they weren’t doing those things or sleeping, they were preparing weapons. Nicky had spent hours sharpening and caring for his sword, readying it for battle.

“Got it!” Copley exclaimed triumphantly after another agonizing 24 hours.

He chartered them a helicopter for transport, leaving within the hour from a nearby airfield. They sent Andy the location and schematics along with plan suggestions for her approval on the long flight. She sent them back her edits as she was transported, ready to be reunited with her team.

The schematics showed the lab with life signs on the lower level and was heavily guarded. They knew they were in for a beating this time. Dr Kozak had seen the carnage at Merrick and was clearly taking any and all precautions.

Quynh came around after another painful death, being injected with God-only-knew-what. “Quynh?” Joe asked.

“I’m OK,” she assured him, her voice hoarse from her dry throat. After centuries in the ocean she never thought she’d be so desperate for water in her life and yet here she was. She hissed feeling another needle entering her arm, drawing more blood to test what the substance had done to change it. If it had changed at all.

“I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again,” Dr Kozak interrupted them. They still only spoke in ancient languages and it was clearly getting to the Dr, so Joe encouraged Quynh to converse with him more the past few days. “You can make all the plans you want, you’re mine, and you’re going nowhere any time soon.” With her sample collected she retreated through to the testing equipment, leaving the door open. She had been taking lots of blood samples, lots of tissue samples and injecting plenty of foul things into their bodies the last few days. Joe had noted that every time she ran samples, there were six, three marked control and three with the substances. It was clear to Joe what was happening, she was testing their blood and tissues against her own, hoping to gain their immortality for herself. He listened to her giving instructions to some lab techs, “if these go well, we may have a viable model of immortality,” she explained. Joe had many doubts in his head, but the woman was not going to be swayed by any of his objections, so he shared them only with Quynh to get at her.

Suddenly, from somewhere in the base, sirens began to sound and it delighted Joe that Dr Kozak looked even a little bit concerned.

_“They know you’re in,” Copley’s voice called through the comms. “Heavy reinforcements are on their way!”_

In the lab, Dr Kozak continued her work with increased urgency. She was determined to get this done. She’d brought in 2 armed guards to the lab, should the others get this far. Joe let Quynh know that if the sirens were going, someone was coming. Hopefully their team and not some pharmaceutical rivals bidding for control of Joe and Quynh.

Suddenly across the room, a vent dropped from the ceiling, clattering loudly across the floor. The armed guards shared a look, one of them moved to inspect as a rope fell through the hole. Joe raised an eyebrow as the other joined him to investigate. Dr Kozak didn’t seem disturbed by the interruption and didn’t even look up from her work in the other room.

From the opposite side of the lab, another vent swung open and two bullets found their marks in the heads of the armed guards, still looking confused at the rope and open vent. The shots got the attention of the Dr who looked up from her work, prepping syringes. Seconds later, Andy dropped to the floor, landing with her weapons out, just in case. Kozak’s shocked gasp caught her attention and she shot the woman’s hand as she reached towards a radio to call in backup.

Andy wasted no time going over to Joe and cutting his arms free with a blade, also handing him one of the handguns before she turned to Quynh, pausing from the shock of finally seeing her and being able to believe it was all true. “Andromache,” Quynh whispered, recognising her though she had changed so much.

“Boss lookout!” It was too late, while Joe had been trying to get out of his restraints, Dr Kozak had charged at Andy with a syringe in her hand, stabbing it into Andy’s shoulder.

“Shit,” Andy cursed, half turning and shooting the Dr through the head, but not before she pressed the plunger, injecting Andy with whatever was in the syringe. Joe ripped out of his last restraints and pulled the remaining solution out, analysing it as best he could.

“It’s blood,” he said as Andy hurried to release Quynh, “label says it’s a mix of mine and Quynh,” he explained.

“Bring it,” Andy groaned, “if I don’t make it, you can have Copley run tests on what else was in there.” She held out an earpiece to Joe and put her finger to her comm, “I have Joe and Quynh, Nile, Nicky how’s it looking out there?”

Joe couldn’t hear the reply, he was too busy finding something that could be used to destroy any remaining samples in the other room. Under a sink he found bleach, smashed what he could find and poured the contents of the bleach bottle over it. “Joe, come on,” Andy called from out in the main lab where they had been held. Dropping a match to a trail he’d left he climbed the rope after Andy and Quynh, pulling it up after them as the lab was engulfed in flames. “What was she doing mixing blood?” Andy asked as they moved through the vents.

“I think she was trying to make a serum for immortality,” he answered.

“Well let’s not rush to test it out, let’s get out of here.”

Nicky and Nile had arrived at their rendezvous first, hastily cleaning off and changing into fresh clothes before moving out to their exit, a chopper the same way they had arrived. Neither spoke, but both were wondering what had gone down and how the others were. They met up with Copley at an airfield; he drove them through the streets of Vancouver and out of the city, driving for a few hours to a more rural area. They pulled up to an old farmhouse that Nicky vaguely remembered staying in with Joe for a decade or so in the late 1800s. It was out of the way back then but now was closer to modern civilisation. He knew it had been updated since then, he knew Booker had spent some time there in the last decade and he would’ve brought it into the modern age. He wasn’t wrong.

Copley set up his laptop to go over the debriefing and Nile started hunting through the cupboards to see what provisions they had. It was mostly canned food, but it was better than what they had found at the previous place. Nicky’s worry was starting to get to him again, though he knew it would take them at least another half a day to arrive going by Copley’s plans.

Nicky volunteered to run to a store, he needed time away from everything, time in the real world to calm his mind. He bought plenty of fresh food and began making a stew when he returned. Declining offers of help he worked for hours, just needing to focus on a task and quieten his mind. When night fell, their arrival was drawing close. It had to be soon.

Nicky found himself, once again, climbing onto the roof to keep watch. He was wearing two hoodies to combat the northern chill and thick gloves and a hat. He’d rigged his night vision lens to his sniper and was keeping a watch on the roads long after darkness fell. He heard the sound of tires on gravel before he laid eyes on the rental car. Silently he slipped back inside and down to the ground floor of the house, entering the kitchen as the door opened and Andy brought Quynh inside.

“Nicoló,” she smiled, going over to envelop him in a warm hug.

Nicky held her, speaking to her quietly, “it’s so good to see you again,” he told her. Nicky heard a final set of boots entering from outside and he loosened his grip on Quynh, opening his eyes to see his husband enter. “Yusef,” he whispered, walking towards him with purpose, pulling him tight into his arms. Joe held onto Nicky like he was a life preserver in the ocean, his face buried in the crook of his neck, inhaling his smell and igniting his senses.

“Nicoló, my heart, you’re freezing,” Joe said, rubbing his hands up and down Nicky’s covered arms. “Were you on the roof again?”

“I couldn’t sit still, waiting in here, not knowing,” Nicky mumbled into his shoulder.

Copley, blessedly, made the debrief short, while the new arrivals ate, allowing everyone to retreat upstairs to get some rest, including himself. In their room, Joe held Nicky tight to his chest, he hated it when they were apart, even though he knew it was sometimes necessary. But while he was taken, he could only imagine what his heart had been going through. Joe and Nicky weren’t fools, they knew each other was a capable fighter, but that didn’t make being apart any easier.

Nicky woke the next morning, still in Joe’s secure embrace. Bringing Joe’s hand to his lips, Nicky pressed kisses along his arm, getting Joe’s grip loose enough that he could turn in his arms to face his husband. Joe’s eyes remained closed, and he, sound asleep, Nicky took a minute to look at Joe, and really take in his face. He’d always liked Joe when he was asleep, he looked so peaceful. Joe’s fingers absently brushed through Nicky’s hair as he opened his eyes. Pressing their foreheads together Joe inhaled deep through his nose before lifting his head, kissing Nicky’s forehead.

“I missed having you in my arms Habibi,” Joe murmured, curling his fingers in Nicky’s hair, he’d been letting it grow out a little the last few months. He liked it this length, he liked being able to curl his soft hair around his fingers.

“I missed your arms around me while I slept,” Nicky told him, tucking his head under Joe’s chin. “That’s twice in the last year I thought we’d lost each other,” Nicky mumbled.

“Me too, maybe we need a break,” Joe pondered.

“I wouldn’t say no to that,” Nicky agreed. “Quynh will need time to learn about the world, Nile is still being trained, but missions I think we need a break from.”

The group talked over breakfast over what they wanted to do next. Quynh had told Andy she wanted to see the world and how it had changed, she wanted to get to know their new teammate and possibly run into Booker so she could stop dreaming of drunken brawls in bars. Nile was all up for travelling but wanted to visit her family for her mother and brother’s birthdays later that month. Copley was happy to travel, and he could coordinate their time off from his computer, keeping track of any breeches to their secrecy. Joe and Nicky agreed to meet up with them on their travels, but they felt they needed a break, to get away from it all. They needed some time to themselves after coming so close to losing each other.

Joe and Nicky parted from the group that evening, heading for the Vancouver airport with Andy driving them. She pulled up at the drop off zone and they got out of the car. Joe got their bags from the trunk of the car while Nicky hugged Andy goodbye. “Take as long as you need,” she said, squeezing Nicky tightly.

“We will, rest assured of that,” Nicky told her, making her laugh.

“Don’t worry about us boss,” Joe said when it was his turn to hug her. He made eye contact with Nicky over her shoulder, and he understood Joe needed a moment with Andy. With a final hug, Nicky took the bags and passports to get in the line for check-in. Joe waited until Nicky was gone before speaking. “You know, it’s funny, when we were escaping that joint I could’ve sworn I heard you swear like you do when you get shot,” he said to her and Andy folded her arms, dipping her head.

“Like I said, I’m in no rush to test and see if that serum was any good. If it works it works, if not, I’m gonna cherish every moment I have the way the two of you do,” she told him.

Joe chuckled, “I get it, see you soon.” With one last squeeze Joe jogged to join Nicky in the line, pecking his cheek as he joined him.

“Something I’m missing?”

“We’ll just have to see,” Joe shrugged, “we’re up,” he said, taking one of the bags and heading to the check-in desk, Nicky following closely.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The next chapter is Joe and Nicky on a vacation in Japan, and that is where the smut is, so if you're not here for that you don't have to read that chapter, it doesn't affect the plot too much other than round out the story
> 
> Hope you're enjoying it, let me know your thoughts :)


	3. The Recuperating

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Joe and Nicky take off to Japan for a much needed get away and have some fun

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Smut in this chapter

Joe and Nicky touched down in Tokyo in the early morning. Collecting their bags, they took a taxi to their hotel, took a brisk shower to freshen up from their flight and unpacked. The first thing they noticed was a card on the desk congratulating them on their marriage, “looks like we’re newly weds again,” Joe chuckled, reading the Japanese script.

“It is almost our anniversary,” Nicky commented, “Andy’s touch do you think?”

“Could be,” Joe said, feeling Nicky step up behind him, arms snaking around his middle, “if we let them know when we’ll be back, they’ll bring us some champagne to celebrate with.”

“Sounds perfect, for later that is,” Nicky said, with a playfulness in his voice that brought a smile to Joe’s face. Nicky nipped at his ear, kissing along his jaw, Joe’s beard tickled his nose. “Will you wear it today?” He asked softly. Joe knew exactly what _it_ was, he and Nicky had been trading off using _it_ for several years at this point. Joe had bought it originally, it was controlled via a phone app, an app they both now possessed and would connect to the device when they decided to bring it out to play. Joe was always on the lookout for something new they could try together, and he had really found a winner with this one.

“For you? Always,” Joe smiled, hugging Nicky’s arms that were wrapped around him. Nicky took hold of his hands and guided them, so he was leaning over the desk, palms flat, looking out of the twelfth story window.

“Wait here,” he instructed softly, reaching around to pull open Joe’s jeans and pull them and his underwear down around his ankles. “No peeking,” he warned, pressing a kiss to his ear. Joe could hear Nicky rooting around in their luggage for what he was looking for. He heard Nicky perch on the bed and heard him open the toy cleaning wipes, wiping it down. He heard Nicky tapping on his phone and the toy come to life as he tested the batteries. Finally, after an age he heard Nicky stand and twist the pump to unlock it on the lube. Nicky was taking his time, expressing the lube over his fingers, warming it in his hand. Joe heard him stand and come closer, but he still didn’t touch him, Joe didn’t realise he was holding his breath until Nicky ran his lube-free fingers down his spine over the back of his shirt.

Nicky pushed in without warning, eliciting a groan from Joe who hadn’t been expecting it. Nicky worked quickly and efficiently, preparing Joe for the toy. Joe pushed himself back onto Nicky’s fingers, Nicky held him still “patience my love,” he murmured, choosing that moment to stroke over Joe’s prostate. Nicky’s other hand found the pump on the lube bottle, reaching round to stroke Joe’s cock. He knew Joe well enough to know when he was close and pulled his fingers out, earning a hiss from Joe. Rubbing lube over the toy, he nudged the tip against his entrance watching his hole pucker and opening to take the toy. Joe pushed his hips back, Nicky pulled it away teasingly before easing it into place, going back to stroking his cock. Wiping his fingers on his jeans, Nicky pulled his phone from his pocket, opening the app connecting to the toy, turning it to the lowest setting, chuckling as it hummed to life and Joe leaned further over the desk.

“Come on Joe,” Nicky whispered in his ear, “don’t want to miss Hanami.” As he spoke, his finger pressed against the flat base of the toy, pressing it against Joe’s prostate. Joe bucked into his fist, cursing as he came over the desk and Nicky’s hand. Nicky brought his fingers to his lips and licked the cum from his fingers, “delizioso,” he murmured. Nicky turned Joe and kissed him, “are you OK?”

“Perfetto,” Joe responded softly, returning Nicky’s kiss with his own.

It had been decades since they had visited Japan and it had changed so much in their absence. They were however in luck, the time they had arrived was the season to indulge in Hanami, watching the cherry blossoms fall from the trees. Heading to a department store they browsed the food on sale, picking a selection of lunch boxes to share between them, speaking fluently when making their purchases.

Walking hand in hand, they followed directions Nicky had gotten from the concierge at their hotel to a park with lots of cherry blossoms. Every so often, Nicky would open his phone and adjust the speed of the toy, chuckling as Joe would suddenly take a breath; Nicky wrapped an arm around Joe’s waist as they walked. Once inside they walked around, taking photos together and of each other before finding somewhere to sit and enjoy their meal. Laying down a blanket they got from the store, they sat to enjoy their feast, Joe shifting a lot at first to get comfortable; Nicky reduced the speed of the toy to a dull hum to help him out, at first. They had a large selection from the department store and would take anything they didn’t finish back to their hotel room for that evening or the next day, keeping it fresh in the fridge. They made sure to taste everything, feeding each other at times, making people passing by smile at their affection for each other.

Once they had had their fill, Nicky leaned back against the cherry blossom tree behind him, scrunching his hoodie up to use as a pillow, opening his arm as an invitation to Joe, who leaned against him, head on his soft tummy. Absently, Nicky ran his fingers methodically through Joe’s curls, feeling his head grow heavy as he drifted off under the tree. Nicky remained awake and vigilant, keeping watch.

A while later, Joe’s hand reached to tangle with his fingers as he woke from his nap feeling refreshed. Holding Nicky’s hand, he brought the back of it to his lips, “back to our room, vita mia?” Nicky asked softly.

Joe murmured his reply of “si,” as they slipped their feet back into their shoes and separated the waste from their leftovers so they could throw it away when they reached their hotel. They walked close, barely able to keep their hands in decent positions as they made their way back. In the lobby a member of staff welcomed them back and offered to take away their waste for them. Nicky thanked her as they made their way to the elevator. In the elevator Joe pushed the button for their floor then promptly pushed Nicky up against the adjacent wall, dropping their leftovers at their feet. Nicky laughed as Joe kissed his jaw, his beard tickling his skin as he trailed kisses over a particularly sensitive spot of Nicky’s he had discovered around the 1400s, pressing his hard front against Nicky also, so he could feel what his husband had been doing to him over the past few hours.

“Yusef,” Nicky groaned as the elevator arrived at their floor, opening with a ding, revealing them to an older gentleman and his wife who were waiting to go down. Barely remembering to pick up their food, they bowed their heads as they passed the couple, saying “konnichiwa,” as they passed to go to their room. Inside their room, Nicky found himself once again pressed up against the door as Joe’s hungry lips found his own, their bag was dropped at their feet as Nicky wrapped his arms around Joe’s neck. Joe’s own hands snaked under Nicky’s hoodie, pushing it up and over his head before resuming kissing, dropping it by the food, repeating the process with Nicky’s plain t-shirt, leaving him in just his jeans.

Bringing their lips back together, Joe’s hands started at Nicky’s shoulders, feeling their way down, thumbs brushing over his nipples as they slid to his sides and around to the small of his back. He teasingly tugged at the belt loop of Nicky’s jeans before his hands slipped into Nicky’s back pockets, squeezing his ass and pulling their fronts flush together. Nicky moaned, bucking his hips into his husband, his own fingers nimbly began unbuttoning Joe’s shirt, pushing it over his shoulders, where it never got past his elbows, his hands still in Nicky’s pockets.

Nicky’s hands came to rest on Joe’s biceps, tightening his grip he turned them, so Joe was against the door, knocking the base of the toy, pushing it against Joe’s prostate. Joe moaned as Nicky began kissing his way down his husband’s body as his fingers opened Joe’s jeans, pushing the fly apart and the jeans down his legs, exposing the hard outline of his cock. Joe cursed as Nicky’s mouth kissed the half-hard outline, his hand gripping at the door handle behind him for stability. “Nicoló,” he moaned as Nicky’s lips moved over the outline, feeling it harden under his lips. Joe’s other hand brushed Nicky’s hair back, raking his fingers through his hair. Nicky’s fingers teased at his waistband, tugging it down. Joe kicked off his shoes as Nicky pushed his jeans and underwear out of his way, stopping to admire his husband.

Nicky’s eyes shut and Joe saw his hand move across himself and his lips move in silent prayer. He’d seen Nicky whisper this prayer a thousand times over. It was the prayer he would whisper to himself before taking communion, because to Nicky, very few things rivalled his faith, other than his love for Joe and the things they did together. When he felt his member pass Nicky’s lips, Joe let his head fall back against the door, moaning Nicky’s name. “Oh Nicoló,” he moaned as Nicky’s mouth worked his cock with practised efficiency. Joe’s fingers tightened in Nicky’s hair; Nicky moaned around his cock taking him deeper into his mouth. Joe tugged Nicky back by his hair, Nicky let his cock rest on his tongue, lapping precum before Joe dipped to kiss him.

Climbing to his feet, Nicky pulled Joe in the vague direction of their bed, hunting for the lube they’d set down earlier that day. Spying it on the desk, where he’d left it earlier, Nicky handed it to Joe, “Yusef, I want you to fuck me while I play with the speed of the toy,” he said. He watched Joe’s eyes darken with lust as he leaned in to press their lips together hungrily.

Turning Nicky around, he pushed his jeans and underwear down, letting Nicky kick them off with his shoes. Nicky got on the bed on all fours, listening to Joe put lube on his fingers. Dropping it on the bed, he moved behind Nicky, reaching between his legs to take hold of his cock. What happened next, Nicky had not been expecting, as Joe’s tongue licked over his entrance, his beard scraping against his skin. “Gesú, cazzo” [Jesus, fuck] Nicky muttered. Dropping to his forearms, resting his head on them. Joe’s tongue lapped and prodded at Nicky’s entrance, eliciting all manners of sounds to tumble from his lips. “Yusef, per favore,” [please] he begged. Joe had not stopped teasing his cock and had slipped a finger in alongside his tongue. Joe added a second finger, stretching Nicky at a painfully tame pace. Joe continued with his fingers until he was ready, kneeling behind Nicky he picked him up, pulling him against his front.

Sucking a mark that wouldn’t last too long on Nicky’s neck, he pressed his hard cock inside of his husband. Nicky’s head fell back against his shoulder as he moaned, seated on Joe’s lap as Joe sucked at his neck. They remained in that position for a moment before Joe rolled his hips into Nicky, slowly at first. Joe had been teased and on the edge for the past few hours, but he was determined for Nicky to cum before he did. Nicky it seemed was playing the same game as his fingers toyed with the phone and the buzzing in Joe’s ass increased. The toy brushed up against his prostate, making him buck hard into Nicky, cursing. Nicky fell forwards, landing on his forearms, reaching between his legs he stroked his cock in time with Joe’s thrusting, waiting to be pulled over the edge. Losing his balance, Joe leant over Nicky taking a second to adjust his position before resuming fucking Nicky, who pressed back hard against Joe, desperate for more. It happened so quickly, Nicky turned the toy to full, phone dropping from his fingers, the toy pushed the tip directly onto Joe’s prostate, starting a chain reaction. Joe thrust hard into Nicky, hitting his husband’s prostate and spilling inside of him as Nicky came hard over his fist, cursing and praising God in a variety of languages.

Joe leant forwards, kissing between Nicky’s shoulder blades, resting his forehead at the spot where his lips had touched, his erratic breathing slowing. His softening cock slipped out of Nicky, thick gloops of cum beading out to follow it. Nicky reached for the phone to shut off the toy, hearing Joe sigh relieved when he did, falling onto the bed beside him. Nicky chuckled, leaning over to kiss him. “Ana bahibak,” [I love you] Nicky whispered.

“Ana bahibak” Joe returned, bringing Nicky’s hand to his lips he licked the sticky cum from his fingers. “I’m going to run a bath,” sharing a final kiss, Joe pushed himself off the bed, catching himself on his unsteady feet to Nicky’s amusement. Nicky watched him go, the flat end of the toy still between his cheeks. Nicky called the front desk, asking if they could have that bottle of champagne with some ice brought up, hearing the faucets start running. He threw on a pair of loose fitting pj bottoms to answer the door and picked up Joe’s shirt.

“Arigatōgozaimashita,” [thank you very much] he said, bowing to the young man who brought it up, noting they had been given a platter of traditional romantic Japanese treats also.

Sweet aromas were wafting from the bathroom, Joe was bent over the large tub, checking the water temperature. Nicky took hold of the base of the toy and twisted it slowly, “would you like it out?” He asked softly.

“I can live with it in a little longer,” Joe smiled over his shoulder. Leaving the water running, they quickly rinsed off in the shower before setting up their drinks and treats by the tub. Joe climbed in first, Nicky across from him as they opened the champagne and fed each other the treats.

Later on, with their treats eaten and the last of the champagne drank, Nicky turned, settling against his husband’s chest in the sweet-smelling water. “What would you like to do for the rest of our trip?” Nicky asked, drowsily.

“There is a spa I’ve seen online I’d like to explore, there’s viewing pools overlooking a mountain and baths of various liquids, coffee, red wine, sake, green tea. But we can do that another day, it’s a bit of a trip from here.”

“Sounds wonderful, Yusef.”

“What about you Habibi?”

“As long as I’m with you, I don’t care what we do, as long as I get to keep you close.”

“Nicoló, I wouldn’t have it any other way,” Joe assured him, relaxing back into the hot water and bubbles, holding his albi [heart] in his arms.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you everyone for reading, I hope you enjoyed the story  
> If you feel you're able to, please do hit that Kudos Button and or leave me a review down below :)

**Author's Note:**

> Please let me know what you think  
> I'll be updating a chapter a day


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